Structure dataset 55: Mauritian Creole

Mauritian Creole is spoken by almost all the island’s ca. 1,250,000 population as a first, second, or additional language. Censuses since 1944 indicate a remarkable shift to Creole as the home language from 35.6% in 1944 to 86.5% in 2011 (with a further 1.2% claiming bilingual use of Creole with either Bhojpuri or French). This reflects the decline in Bhojpuri which was the home language of perhaps 40% as recently as 1972 to merely 5.3% in 2011. Although French remains dominant in the media, it is claimed as the home language by only 4.1%. Chinese, Indian languages (other than Bhojpuri), and English (the only official language!) were collectively reported as the home languages of less than 3%. For our default lect, we have used oral and written data mainly from people in urban areas whose home language is exclusively Creole. Exceptionally, we give a few examples, signalled as Bhojpuri lect, of certain features which clearly reflect Bhojpuri influence, but which are not exclusively limited to the Creole of people who are, or were formerly, speakers of Bhojpuri. While there are many local publications and advertisements in Creole, the Mauritian population as a whole has not yet shown much inclination to adopt the officially approved spelling for this language now used to a limited extent in primary schools.